The famous parable ends with no neat conclusion. The older brother is still outside while the party roars indoors. We don’t know what he will do. Will he stomp off in a huff or join the celebration?

We don’t know what he will do because we’re not so sure what we would do in his place. Jesus keeps telling us the Kingdom of Heaven is all around us if only we’d just take a look. The party is going great guns just through those doors so why are we hesitating?

Is it because we’ve grown so damned accustomed to our own limited way of life, our own limited understanding of God?

We don’t know what the older brother will do but there is no question about the father. There is no question about God.

"But while he was yet at a distance, his father saw him and had compassion and ran and embraced him and kissed him."

This is the image to hold to our hearts today as we struggle with our own decisions. It does not matter if you are that younger brother struggling to make sense out of a life that often doesn’t, or whether you’re that older brother trying to decide whether to join the party or not.

When all is said and done, none of that matters much. When all is said and done, all that matters is God’s love for you.